Why the Institute Became a School

A New Beginning at the University of Dallas

Shock happens. In the 2001-2002 school year, the
University of Dallas’ then Institute for Religious and Pastoral Studies (IRPS)
reeled in the wake of resignations submitted by the director and all full-time
faculty members. Only a few students remained in the program. Though
administrators assured them that their studies could continue, nobody knew what
form the curriculum would take.

Today
all that is a distant memory. In fact, students and faculty at UD’s newly
renamed School of Ministry say it’s a case of “So much has happened but nothing
has changed.”

For
most of those who have enrolled since the turnaround began in 2002, the School
of Ministry is the same old institute they always knew: faithful to the Church,
vibrant in the university community and a vital presence in the parishes of the
Dallas-Fort Worth Diocese.

It’s
just bigger now — much bigger. More than 900 students participate in its programs.
And, with many initiatives underway at once, the School of Ministry projects
its enrollment to nearly double over the next four years, to 1,600.

The
change from IRPS to School of Ministry, announced at a banquet on April 27,
reflects “the significant growth that has occurred over the past five years,
growth that is projected to continue as we build upon relationships with
dioceses, institute new programs and reach out to new students,” UD professor
Matthew Ogilvie says. He adds that the new name “doesn’t change anything. It
simply recognizes the great work we’ve done and the work we’ll continue to do.”

Brian
Schmisek, the School of Ministry’s director, adds that calling the program a
“school” rather than an “institute” says that “we’ve grown bigger, first of
all, and also that we’re more integrated with the university. ‘Ministry’
reflects our focus on training and formation for deacons and lay ministers.
Overall, the new name gives people a better idea of who we are and what it is
we’re doing here.”

The
name change, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the former IRPS, marks a
milestone in several ways. For one thing, it signals a comeback for the
institute, which suffered six years ago after the bout of resignations, which
triggered a public debate over the Catholic identity of, and long-term vision
for, the program — and the university.

Schmisek
says that, when he was chosen as the new director in May 2002, he knew that the
leadership of the institute needed a new beginning. “I went out and talked to a
whole lot of people,” Schmisek recalls. “I wanted to learn the needs of the
local church and the diocese.”

As
it turned out, both clergy and laity needed and wanted a more in-depth adult
faith formation.

“So
we created those programs,” Schmisek says. “For example, our Catholic Biblical
School responds to a desire for more knowledge and study of the Bible. That was
something adult Catholics in the area wanted. We thought we needed to create
this Catholic presence, and so we took professors from the university and sent
them out into the parishes.”

Informal Fidelity

At
present, the biblical school is one of only a few Catholic programs of its kind
in the country. It offers courses in both English and Spanish, and online as
well as on campus. Students of any age may certify in its four-year program.
Last year, more than 620 enrolled, making it the largest of any comparable
program at a Catholic university in the United States.

In
addition, the School of Ministry now offers five master’s degree programs: theological
studies, Catholic school teaching, religious education, pastoral ministry and
Catholic school leadership. The faculty — a priest, a Dominican sister and 11
laypeople — will also host a handful of conferences each year, including the
school’s first ministry conference to take place in Dallas this September.

No
formal system exists at the School of Ministry for ensuring that faculty
members teach in accord with the magisterium. Instead, Schmisek says, a
rigorous pre-hire screening process weeds out professors who would compromise
the school’s authentic Catholic identity. “We do a pretty excellent job of
fulfilling the mandate of Ex Corde Ecclesiae,” he says.

Adds
Prof. Ogilvie: “Our policy of working with our bishops means they can feel
confident that our teaching ministry is a faithful expression of the Church’s
teaching mission.”

This
is especially important because the School of Ministry has been entrusted with
the formation of deacons for the diocese of Dallas-Fort Worth, as well as
offering education and formation programs to other dioceses in eastern Texas.

It
all works, Schmisek explains, because both faculty and students tend to
self-select from among those with a love for the life of the Church.

“They
want to hand on not only knowledge of faith but also, you might say, the heart
of the faith,” he says. “They’re people who not only study Catholicism but
actually live it out.”

Tammy
Amosson, who began her studies at UD early in 2004 and has been taking the
School of Ministry’s online courses since that summer, says she has found
faithful companionship with her teachers and fellow students.

“The
School of Ministry has complemented my roles as wife, mother and lay minister,”
she says. “The other day, I overheard my oldest son telling someone that his
mom was really smart about Jesus and the Bible. Through my studies I’m teaching
my children, by example, the importance of ongoing faith formation and the fact
that we never outgrow our quest for understanding.”

Nationwide Reach

Ogilvie
and Amosson agree that the School of Ministry’s courses, while offering
in-depth knowledge and doctrinal solidity, also adapt well to the lives of
their students and especially of the laity.

“In
2004, when I found out I was both pregnant and moving out of Dallas, online
classes had just become available through the School of Ministry,” Amosson
says. “I was immediately able to continue with my studies, even 300 miles away.
As a mom of four, I can set my own schedule and listen to the lectures when the
kids are in bed.”

Ogilvie,
whose teaching load includes online courses, says he enjoys providing
intellectual formation to Catholics in all kinds of situations around the
country.

“Our
guiding vision for online education has been the question, ‘What do students
need today?’” he says. “In being student-centered and oriented to their needs,
rather than trying to fit students into pre-existing models, our program now
reaches students from all over the United States.”

Schmisek
looks at the progress the School of Ministry has made in light of its
commission 20 years ago. At that time, Bishop William Friend of Shreveport,
La., called on the IRPS to “take a decisive role in the theological formation
and continuing education of Catholic leaders.”

Schmisek
says, “Today we are meeting the challenge.”

Katy Carl writes from St. Louis.

INFORMATION
University of Dallas
School of Ministry
udallas.edu/irps
(972) 721-5000

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